Oregon Hospitals Mean...

Policy and Advocacy

Hospitals need advocates now more than ever​ | OAHHS represents Oregon hospitals at the state and federal levels to advance sound health policies and to ensure that lawmakers understand how the decisions they make impact the health of Oregonians.

Patient Safety & Quality

Making Oregon the safest state to receive health care. | Oregon hospitals come together through OAHHS to reduce harm, share best practices, measure improvement and, ultimately, make Oregon the safest place to receive healthcare in the nation.

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​When it comes to health care, ignorance is not bliss. | It’s important that all of our members stay as up-to-date as possible with the latest breaking health care news, legislative issues and patient safety information. The health of our patients, our hospitals and our communities depend on it.

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Color-coded Wristband Standardization in Oregon

In December 2005, a patient safety advisory was issued from the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Reporting System that received national attention. This advisory brought to surface an incident that occurred in a hospital in which clinicians nearly failed to rescue a patient who had a cardiopulmonary arrest because the patient had been incorrectly designated as “DNR” (Do Not Resuscitate).

The source of confusion was a nurse that had incorrectly placed a yellow wristband on the patient. In that hospital a yellow wristband meant DNR. In a nearby hospital, where the nurse also worked, yellow meant “restricted extremity” which was what she wanted to alert staff about. Fortunately in this case, another nurse recognized the mistake and the patient was resuscitated.

We wanted to assess if this was a potential for harm in Oregon. In November 2006, surveys were sent to hospital QI Directors and Patient Safety Officers asking questions related to Color-coded Wristbands. The results were concerning; seven different colors/methods are being used in Oregon to convey allergy status and four colors/methods are being used to convey DNR.